


a case of you

by stripper_girl_drunk



Category: Power Rangers (2017)
Genre: F/F, Jealous!Kim
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-31
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-12-09 04:05:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11661267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stripper_girl_drunk/pseuds/stripper_girl_drunk
Summary: "Whatever you do, don't imagine your otp getting into a fight over the phone and saying mean things to each other and then one of them gets into a car accident on the way home." Trimberly.





	a case of you

They’d been having the same argument for an hour now—or, at least Trini thought it had been an hour. The one time she tried to casually glance at her watch, Kim’s voice had reached a new octave, and she was already having a tough time trying to calm her down—Trini didn’t need her girlfriend’s crazy to escalate any further, especially with the huge group of people now watching them. There was a part of Trini that understood Kim’s side of the argument, and there was also a part of her, a part she was really trying to control, that just wanted to grab Kim and shake her for acting like such a spoiled brat.

It started as a simple invite to a party; all the rangers were invited, Trini included. She wanted to say no, but Kim looked so happy at the idea of being invited out after all the mean girl drama she had been through, and the smaller girl was always a sucker for those soft brown eyes. Billy had taken some convincing, but Jason was there immediately in support; the moment he wanted to go, everyone else would leave, too. The question had barely been asked and Zack had said yes, so the plans were officially solidified for the night. The three guys piled into Billy’s van while the two girls went in Kim’s car, and headed towards what was sure to be a relaxing night of music, drinking, and dancing.

They arrived to the sound of loud music blaring and even louder voices cheering. Strange colored liquids were being passed around in iconic red cups, while couples were busy feeling the music in their own ways. The five rangers started out together; they laughed and they drank, they gave each other shit. As the drinks kept flowing and the music kept pounding, they gradually went their own ways. Billy had found his group of nerd friends in one corner and joined them, a smile of familiarity coming to his face, while Jason was showing up the new kid with what he deemed ‘his sick martial arts moves’—the new kid, Tommy, seemed happy enough (or drunk enough) to humor their fearless leader. Zack was, unsurprisingly, making his rounds, talking to all the pretty people.

Kim and Trini remained huddled together, foreheads grazing and breaths mingling as they enjoyed each other’s company. A rough clearing of a throat broke them apart, and they were both surprised to see Kimberly’s former friends staring down at them. Trini was the first to react; she hopped up quickly and approached them, barely able to contain a smirk when they backed up, their hands in front of their bodies in a show of surrender.

“No, wait—it’s not like that. We just wanna talk to Kim.” They sounded sincere enough, and Kim didn’t have to say a word; Trini could tell from her face that she wanted to talk to them as well. Trini understood where she was coming from, and why she would bother giving her time to them. These girls were once her close friends, and she understood that the memories made with good friends couldn’t just be thrown away. Kimberly stood up and kissed the top of Trini’s head, the yellow ranger’s eyes boring into theirs to gage their reactions. Both girls stared back, and she felt a small sliver of hope that maybe, just maybe, Kimberly could have her old friends back.

Any other time in her life, Trini would be content to be alone. She had spent so much of her life in such a state, just existing, that it was the norm for her. But not anymore. Now, she had friends, she had a _team_ , and, most importantly, she had Kim. Lonely was a word Trini had learned to leave in the past, so it was no surprise when she felt herself lighting up when she heard footsteps approaching.

“Hey, you. Long time no see, huh?”

The newcomer smiled down at Trini and took a seat, and Trini couldn’t help but smile back; her name was Chloe; they had been assigned as partners in English, and she and her infectious smile were trouble. Trini knew it, Chloe knew it, and Kim herself had been on guard ever since Trini had mentioned her new partner.

“I know that girl,” she had said one time, nostrils flaring. “She flirts with everyone, and if I see her flirting with you, I’m going to ruin that ginger’s day.”

“Hey, Chloe. How are you? Enjoying the party so far?”

She smiled again, perfectly white teeth and bright blue eyes beaming back.

“Much better now that I’ve found you. I was here with some friends, but they went off to grab more alcohol. What are you doing here, all by yourself? You didn’t break up with that girl you were seeing, did you? Sorry, her name has completely slipped my mind.”

Trini knew where this was headed, and she probably should have stopped it sooner, but Chloe was a nice girl; if she could learn to keep it in her pants, the idea of friendship wasn’t too farfetched. They had learned a decent amount about one another in English, and had a surprising amount in common—much to Kim’s irritation, of course.

“Kimberly. Kimberly Hart, you remember her, right? Head cheerleader, mean right hook. And yes, we’re still very much together.”

The redhead frowned and then shrugged it off. “Right. Kimberly. I remember now. Oh, well. So, about that English project we have…”

The rest of the next hour passed quickly, and Trini would be the first to admit that she was having a good time. She was missing her girlfriend like crazy, but was hopeful that Kimberly was enjoying herself and mending fences. The two girls talked about their favorite books and favorite authors, but then Chloe made one fatal mistake; she reached forward, her intention to place her hand on Trini’s arm, when Kim chose that exact moment to make an appearance.

“What the _fuck_ is going on here?” Her words were slurred more than before, her eyes darting wildly between the two of them.

“Babe, hey, you’re back. How was your talk?”

It was a lame diversion tactic, but she had to try. Trini knew there was nothing going on, Chloe knew it, too, but Kimberly—Kimberly had already decided the truth for herself.

“I leave for a little while to talk to some friends, and you’re flirting with this ginger bitch?”

That was as far as Trini could let it go. She could see it firsthand that Kim was about to spin out of control, and the smell of tequila was clear on her breath. Any other time, Kimberly would have been happy to see Trini interacting with people, breaking out of the shell she had created for herself, but this time was different; this party had tequila, and Kim and tequila did not mix well—nor did Kim, tequila, and jealousy. She was volatile.

“Kim, that’s enough, let’s go talk, okay?”

Kimberly growled and stepped forward towards Chloe.

“You flirting with my girl when I’m not around? Trying to make your move?” She was getting louder by the second and they had drawn a crowd; Trini had to shut it down before Kim became violent, her ranger strength accidentally hurting someone.

“Kimberly, we’re leaving. Now.”  She grabbed the taller girl’s arm and tugged her away, some of the anxiety leaving her body when Kimberly allowed herself to be led away. When they were far enough away and the crowd had dispersed, Trini turned to face Kimberly, her voice soft and sincere.

“Baby, we were just talking. You know that we have class together; we were talking about a project, that’s all.”

Her eyes narrowed dangerously, signaling that convincing her of anything was going to be damn near impossible.

“So like, when you two talk about your ‘projects,’ do you normally let her put her hands all over your fucking body?”

“She barely touched my arm, Kim! You’re drunk and you’re seeing shit that isn’t there!”  Trini had tried to be calm about the whole situation, really, she did, but Kim knew exactly which buttons to push and how hard. Trini would never cheat on her; Kimberly Hart was her entire world, her everything, her reason for living, but sometimes it was hard to convince Kim of that, because of how deeply her own insecurities ran.

“Well maybe you weren’t flirting with her, but she was flirting with you—and you weren’t doing anything to stop her!”

Trini squeezed her eyes shut and took in a deep breath. _In and out_ , Trini. _She’s being an ass, but remember, you love her_. Trini stalked forward and put her hands on either side of Kim’s face, cupping it gently.

“Kimberly. Listen to me. You have to believe me; there is nothing going on between us—we were just having a conversation.”

For a moment, Kim seemed to really contemplate what was being said—and then her eyes clouded over, and Trini knew she had lost the battle.

“Yeah, I’m sure you were,” she spoke, her tone amused. “So, do you plan on fucking here, or will you wait until I leave? Cause I can go, if you want some privacy. Maybe she’ll do that thing with her tongue that I know you love.”

And that was all Trini could take.

“Okay. I’m done. I can’t be around you right now. You stay here and drink till you fucking puke, I’m going home.”

Trini shoved past Kim and headed towards the car, raw anger getting the better of her. Trini rationalized that Kimberly would be okay; Billy didn’t drink, so he’d be fine with bringing her home. Trini loved Kimberly, loved her so much, but she needed time away, if only for tonight. They had arguments in the past; they weren’t perfect, but mostly they seemed to stem from Kim’s fear that someday, she wouldn’t be enough. Trini did her best to assure Kim of the opposite, but apparently alcohol was a potent truth serum, and she was still feeling insecure.

Trini was nearly home when she heard Kim’s specific ringtone going off. If she was being honest, she didn’t want to answer; she had finally gotten her anger under control, and talking to Kimberly, assuming she was in the same state as how Trini had left her, was liable to set her off again. But Trini had to answer. Absolutely had to. Because she Kimberly’s, and Kimberly was hers. She’d always pick up.

“Kimberly? Are you okay?”

Trini heard only breathing on the other end, but she was content with just waiting.

“I had a run in with your ginger girlfriend. Let’s just say that her nose now matches her hair.”

Trini groaned and closed her eyes, squeezing the steering wheel tightly.

“Kimberly, what did you do?”

A sharp hitching of breath, and she let out a choked sob.

“Trin—I don’t—I don’t think this is gonna work— “

Trini wanted to respond to her, she wanted to tell Kim that this was just a rough patch, that they’d get through it together, that she’d never accept that it was over—but it was hard, so very hard-- to speak over the shattering of the driver’s side glass, over the screeching of the tires as both cars tried to stop, over the sound of the front of her car collapsing inwards, steel grinding and straining—over the sound of her own pained scream.

* * *

  


            She didn’t wake up on her own accord. She woke when she heard the hushed murmurs of people in the room. A male voice was speaking.

“Your daughter is—well, she’s fine. It’s remarkable, really.  She was extremely lucky. After a crash of this magnitude, normally I’d say she wouldn’t be here.”

Trini’s eyes remained shut, but she was listening closely, trying to piece together what exactly had happened.

“And the other driver?”

Her mother’s voice.

“He’s pretty banged up, but he’ll survive. It appears that he was intoxicated at the time of the collision.”

_‘A car accident. That’s right. I was driving, and I was—oh jesus, I was talking to Kimberly, and then—then I wasn’t. I have to talk to her, I have to see how she is. If she heard any of that—‘_

She opened her eyes and sat up, some of the stiffness remaining in her aching limbs—but mostly she was fine. It was a ranger thing, obviously, but it wasn’t like she could tell that to the doctors or her family.

“Trini, you’re awake! You have to lay down, sweetie, you were in a bad accident.”  


She held back a smile as her mother began to fuss over her, a rare show of true affection.

“Mom, I’m okay, I feel okay. I guess I got lucky. Is Kim here? I need to talk to her.”

She nodded and brushed her fingers through Trini’s hair, that action alone telling her all she needed to know. They weren’t so great at conveying their feelings, but this was enough to show Trini how much her mother cared and how worried she really was.

“All of your friends are here, Trini. I don’t know how they got here so quickly, but they’re in the waiting room now. Do you want to speak to them?”

“Just Kim, Mom. I’ll talk to the other guys later.”

She nodded again and wiped away the tears that had yet to fall. “Okay, I’ll send her in. I’m so glad you’re okay, Trini.”

“Thanks, Mom. I mean it.”

Her footsteps faded away as another sounded. Trini would recognize those steps anywhere, at any time. Trini was attuned to her, and this time was no different.

She entered the room and shut the door softly, and for what felt like eternity, they simply stared at one another. Kim’s eyes were lucid, but she looked like she hadn’t slept in a week. There were dark circles forming and she had forgone makeup—and still she was the most beautiful person Trini had ever laid eyes on. She looked sad, so sad, and somehow exceptionally small, just standing there, staring. Her fingers twirled together nervously—and then she broke down. She rushed forward towards Trini’s bed and collapsed to her knees, her head buried in the thin sheets of the hospital bed. Trini could barely make out what she was saying over the sound of her crying and attempts to catch her breath.

“I’m so sorry, Trini, I didn’t mean any of it, please, please forgive me. I’m sorry, baby, I’m so very sorry. I almost lost you. You were almost gone, forever, and _I was so horrible_ to you.”

Trini ran her fingers through Kim’s hair gently, hoping it would be enough to calm her down.

“Kimberly, look at me. I’m fine, I promise. It’s going to be okay.”

If anything, she began to cry harder, and Trini was starting to fear that some unfortunate nurse was going to walk into the room.

“You didn’t lose me, Kim, you’ll never lose me.”

She finally looked up, understanding that the injured girl was talking about more than the crash.

When Kim spoke again, her voice was raw. “I felt you. When that other car hit you, I felt you, your pain, and then—then I felt empty. I thought you were gone for good, and I had said such cruel things to you.” Her teary eyes met Trini’s, and the smaller girl felt her heart shatter. “I don’t want us to be over. I never wanted that. I love you, I love you so much—sometimes it’s hard for me to understand why you chose me.”

Trini grabbed Kimberly lightly and tugged, wanting her to be as close as possible. Kimberly hesitated, fearful of worsening Trini’s injuries, but the yellow ranger insisted until Kim was flush against her in the bed, their eyes locked firmly on one another.

“I understand, Kim. I really do. You think it’s easy for me to accept that the beautiful head cheerleader chose me, of all people? We chose each other, Kimberly. We’re together for a reason. I love you, and you love me; that’s what this is, just us, loving each other, completing each other.”

She let out another shuddery breath and placed her forehead to Trini’s, finally beginning to understand. It was going to be a rough road, but they had each other; they would take on the world, hand in hand.

Together.

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> This was something I had posted previously, but was recently rewritten because the style wasnt jiving with me anymore. Much love.


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